October 25, 2021

An assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering has received a $1.1 million NIH grant to investigate brain-body connections and advance understanding of aging in normal and pathological brains. Catie Chang, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, leads the research team, which will focus on developing machine learning methods that can automatically reconstruct physiological signals from functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data. Increased availability of large datasets from fMRI studies has supported deeper research into functional systems of the human brain. Slow fluctuations in respiration volume and heart rate are a major contributor to fMRI signals. These systemic physiological changes can account for a substantial proportion of signals across gray matter as well as exhibit spatial patterns that overlap with functional networks. Typically, such signals are dismissed as noise in functional imaging studies. But the data itself may provide useful information about brain function and physiology, enabling novel investigation of brain vasculature, autonomic function, and brain-body interactions, Chang said. This project is funded by the National Institutes of Health. MORE

Vanderbilt and Penn State engineers have developed a novel approach to design and fabricate thin-film infrared light sources with near-arbitrary spectral output driven by heat, along with a machine learning methodology called inverse design that reduced the optimization time for these devices from weeks or months on a multi-core computer to a few minutes on a consumer-grade desktop. The ability to develop inexpensive, efficient, designer infrared light sources could revolutionize molecular sensing technologies. Additional applications include free-space communications, infrared beacons for search and rescue, molecular sensors for monitoring industrial gases, environmental pollutants and toxins. Funding sources included the Office of Naval Research, Army Research Office, National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship, and the National Science Foundation. MORE

Students and professors from Middle Tennessee State and Vanderbilt universities are working together to uncover new archaeological details about a largely forgotten African American neighborhood that was an important part of Nashville’s post-Civil War history. The Bass Street neighborhood, founded by formerly enslaved people who constructed Fort Negley during the Civil War, is being excavated by undergraduate students in a course taught by Andrew R. Wyatt, associate professor of anthropology at MTSU, with support from Vanderbilt faculty [including Angela Sutton, assistant dean for graduate education and strategic initiatives in the College of Arts and Science; Steven Wernke, associate professor of anthropology and director of the Vanderbilt Initiative for Interdisciplinary Geospatial Research; Jacob Sauer, PhD’12, senior lecturer of anthropology, and Jane Landers, Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of History.]   MORE

Andrew Hodlin, a first-year law student at Vanderbilt Law School, has been awarded the John S. Beasley II Scholarship as part of Vanderbilt University’s Bass Military Scholars Program, which welcomed its third cohort of military veterans this fall. Established in 2018, the Bass Military Scholars Program was made possible by a transformational $25 million gift from the Lee and Ramona Bass Foundation. The foundation named one of the scholarships within the program in honor of alumnus John S. Beasley II, BA’52, JD’54, and specified that the scholarship be awarded to a Navy veteran each year. Beasley is a former U.S. Navy officer and served as a Vanderbilt administrator for more than 50 years. The Bass Military Scholars Program provides $25,000 per year to an annual cohort of accomplished and talented veterans pursuing graduate and professional degrees at Vanderbilt University’s Law School, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, Owen Graduate School of Management and Peabody College of education and human development. MORE

A team of Vanderbilt and Vanderbilt University Medical Center faculty are working together to produce a series of children’s science books aimed at fourth grade–level readers. The books introduce science concepts, promote stronger identification with scientists of all backgrounds and establish a foundation of science literacy that children can carry forward throughout their lives. The first three scientists featured in the Who Me? series are a digital doctor, a star gazer and a bone inspector. The trio of authors launching this series are Dr. Kevin Johnson, Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor and chair of the Department of Biomedical Informatics, professor of pediatrics and informatician-in-chief at VUMC; Keivan Stassun, Stevenson Professor of Physics and Astronomy and professor of computer science; and Tiffiny Tung, professor and chair of the Department of Anthropology. The books describe the paths each took to become a scientist and introduce readers to discoveries made by each scientist. MORE

Vanderbilt University has released its 2020–21 Report for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion highlighting the university’s commitment to several actionable objectives that were outlined in the July 2020 commitment to strengthening equity, diversity and inclusion at Vanderbilt. In late June 2021, Diermeier and Churchwell reflected on the one-year anniversary of the university’s pledge to accelerate its work to make Vanderbilt a more diverse and inclusive community in which every member can thrive. This year’s report expands upon the July 2020 commitment, focusing on several pillars of actionable objectives. MORE

A group of Vanderbilt scholars with legal, historical and political expertise on immigration came together Oct. 19 to discuss the crisis around Haitian migrants at the southern U.S. border and the recent influx of Afghan refugees to the United States. The virtual panel—hosted by the Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy—stressed the need to “recreate and reimagine” the immigration system to root out racism and bias. MORE

[Jabari] Brown’s office is adjacent to Hawkins Field and down the hall from Vanderbilt head coach Tim Corbin and his staff. Brown is there daily because he earned the opportunity to be named the first recipient of the annual Maggie Corbin Minority Baseball Apprenticeship, a position awarded to a minority candidate. With the assistance of the Vanderbilt Athletics department and Vanderbilt athletic director Candice Lee, Maggie and Tim Corbin created the internship because they were tired of hearing about the narrative about the lack of minority coaches in college baseball—so they decided to do something about it. Brown’s role is a non-coaching staff position. He is not permitted to coach or recruit, but can be involved in analytics, film editing, statistics and tasks of a similar nature. The Maggie Corbin Minority Baseball Apprenticeship is a privately-funded apprenticeship for a minority candidate who desires to make coaching baseball a profession. Driven by the lack of collegiate coaching opportunities for minorities, the Corbins wish to provide a learning experience within one of the nation’s top collegiate baseball environments. MORE